]]>http://www.farmcurious.com/who-says-fermenting-is-good-for-you/feed/0FARMcurious Fermenting Set – a Simpler Way to Culturehttp://www.farmcurious.com/farmcurious-fermenting-set-a-simpler-way-to-culture/
http://www.farmcurious.com/farmcurious-fermenting-set-a-simpler-way-to-culture/#commentsTue, 13 May 2014 18:58:37 +0000http://www.farmcurious.com/?p=6561more]]>You can hardly turn on the news without hearing about a new discovery about the “human microbiome”, that collection of bacteria living in an on our bodies. Study findings tell us that a more diverse collection of ‘gut bacteria’ will help with everything from a weak immune system, irritable bowel syndrome and even obesity!

So why isn’t everyone loading up on fermented food?

Asking this question to anyone who would listen in the past year has led me to believe that these are the issues that seem to turn people away.

Fear of yeast and mold growing on top

Space limitations

Expense of fancy fermentation setups

Lack of knowledge on how to do it

Unwillingness to have something ‘smelly’ in the house

Not sure whether they like to eat fermented things or how to use them

No one seems to question the idea that eating more probiotic, live-cultured food is probably a good idea. However, convincing the larger part of the population that it’s perfectly safe and normal to eat something that’s been resting under a slimy layer of mold is another battle altogether.

Enter the FARMcurious Fermenting Set with ReCAP.

Minimize the risk of growing nasty yeast and mold in your fermented food

Ferment smaller batches with more variety, allowing for more experimentation

Avoid having to commit a large storage space to single-use bulky fermentation crocks

Experiment more and explore more varieties of fermented yumminess

Reduce off-putting funky fermenting smells

Plus, it’s not single purpose! When you’re not fermenting, use the ReCAP lid without the airlock to tote around smoothies or coffee!

We’re promoting the FARMcurious Fermenting Set through Kickstarter and we’ve already reached our tier 1 goal, guaranteeing its success. We still need your help sharing the project though. We created this page to help make that easier.

Still not sure? Check out our video.

FARMcurious Kickstarter Video

We’d obviously love if you’d back our Kickstarter campaign or pre-order a set. But do sweeten the deal, we’re hosting a giveaway along with five other bloggers to promote the campaign. Use the widget below to enter our giveaway or visit one of these other amazing site by food writers who have all contributed recipes for the bonus electronic recipe collection available through our Kickstarter.

You can enter by liking us on Facebook, Following us on Twitter or by Tweeting the following message (all must use the widget below to be entered). Twitter message should read: “Say no to mold and back the @farmcurious #Kickstarter project for a home Fermenting Set. http://kck.st/1eeGNzm”

]]>http://www.farmcurious.com/farmcurious-fermenting-set-a-simpler-way-to-culture/feed/3FARMcurious Brings Home Fermenting to The Masses with Kickstarter Projecthttp://www.farmcurious.com/kickstarter-press-release-farmcurious-fermenting-set-with-recap/
http://www.farmcurious.com/kickstarter-press-release-farmcurious-fermenting-set-with-recap/#commentsWed, 16 Apr 2014 17:57:12 +0000http://www.farmcurious.com/?p=6489more]]>FARMcurious Brings Home Fermenting to The Masses with Kickstarter Project

Oakland, CA – April 16, 2014 — FARMcurious, an Oakland-based company, announced today the launch of a Kickstarter project bringing home fermenting to a larger market through innovative design and delicious new recipe collections. The project, running from April 18 – June 18, features a fermenting set designed to simplify the process of home fermentation, making it accessible to more people by reducing the likelihood of mold and contamination.

“With new research into probiotics and the importance of a robust bacterial presence within the human body, people are turning in droves to traditional methods of home fermentation,” said FARMcurious founder Nicole Easterday. “The trouble is, the majority of people still find the process of fermentation somewhat mysterious and even downright gross. We anticipate our project will help change some of those perceptions.”

With today’s launch, Kickstarter backers can opt to receive a bonus recipe collection submitted by a collection of popular food authors and bloggers to be used with the set. Some of the notable authors and bloggers include Sean Timberlake of Punk Domestics, Kate Payne of Hip Girls Guide to Homemaking, Erica Strauss of Northwest Edible Life and more.

The project has set its fundraising goal at $15,000 and the company founder expects to reach that goal within the first three weeks of the campaign, a rapid pace for a small start-up company.

The Benefits of Fermenting

Fermenting is a healthful way to preserve food while increasing the population of beneficial bacteria in the digestive system, or human microbiome. The bacterial community in the human body has been linked to immune function, allergies, obesity, digestion and other ‘modern’ ailments. However, many people report that they have not tried fermentation at home because of their trepidation regarding mold growth, safety of home ferments, space considerations and expense.

The FARMcurious Fermenting Set with ReCAP seeks to remedy these issues by introducing consumers to a cleaner fermenting option at a reasonable price. The Fermenting Set allows carbon dioxide produced during fermentation to escape while keeping yeast and mold at bay and locking undesirable smells inside the jar. Because it fits on any wide mouth Mason jar, there’s no need to invest in expensive, bulky fermentation crocks or other devices.

Pricing and Availability

The FARMcurious Fermenting Set with ReCAP is available at $25.00 per two-piece set

Made by one of the few clay artists recommended by the fermenting king Sandor Katz himself, this fermenting crock is created from hand-thrown lead-free clay by an American craftsman. All ceramic crocks from this artist are both microwave & dishwasher friendly, using non-toxic non-leaded glazes that are completely food safe.

With hand-stamped letterpress word “FERMENT” on the front of some and chalk boards on the front of others, this urban chic crock reminds us that taking control of our own food and nutrition is a bit of an uprising in itself. Sandor couldn’t have stated it better.

Approx 7″x7″, 3.5 quarts, 6 pounds.

Sandstone

Brick

Vanilla Bean

Oxidized Copper

]]>http://www.farmcurious.com/hand-thrown-fermenting-crock/feed/0Using your FARMcurious Fermenting Sethttp://www.farmcurious.com/using-your-farmcurious-fermenting-set/
http://www.farmcurious.com/using-your-farmcurious-fermenting-set/#commentsMon, 03 Jun 2013 05:41:23 +0000http://www.farmcurious.com/?p=4729more]]>Thanks for purchasing a FARMcurious Fermenting Set! These instructions will help guide you through using and enjoying your set.

1) Wash the ReCAP lid in warm, soapy water and rinse well.

2) Open the flip-top lid on the ReCAP and insert the rubber stopper into the hole. Insert the narrow end of the airlock into the top of the stopper.

3) Remove the airlock lid to fill the airlock to the etched line (or about halfway) with water and replace the lid.

4) Wash with warm, soapy water any canning jar with the size opening that matches your ReCAP lid (regular or wide mouth).

If using non-shredded vegetables like carrot coins or coarsely chopped or whole produce…ad the produce to the jar and pour over it 1 cup water with 1-3 tsp sea or kosher salt dissolved into it.

If using shredded produce (like cabbage for sauerkraut)…add the salted chopped produce that you’ll be fermenting and pack down tightly. If the brine extracted from the produce by the salt doesn’t rise up to cover the produce you can add brine made up of one 1 TB Kosher salt to one cup of water. Please see this note about using a weight with shredded produce.

5) Leave one inch of space between the top of the brine and the top of the jar. Screw the ReCAP Fermenting Set to the top of the filled jar and leave in a cool dark place for several days to several weeks to ferment. Within 24 hours you should usually see bubbles rising to the top – this is carbon dioxide produced during fermentation.

6) Wait 4-7 days then taste the product periodically to get a sense of how long to ferment it – it will become more sour and less crunchy with time. The key to excellent fermentation is cool and slow, which is why many people keep fermentation vessels buried in the ground or in root cellars. When the acidity and texture have reached your preferred level, remove the stopper and airlock, close the ReCAP lid and store in the refrigerator where it will keep for many months.

In warmer temperatures, fermentation will go faster (taking 3 days to 4 weeks) while it will go more slowly in cooler temperatures, taking 4-8 weeks.

Process for Basic Fermenting:

Here is a basic recipe that you can use and adapt to your taste.

1) Slice 1 lb produce to the thickness you prefer and add to a mason jar.

2) Combine 1 cup water with 1 TB Kosher salt and pour over the produce, leaving 1″ of space between the top of the brine and the top of the jar.

4) Optional: Use a large piece of produce like a whole cabbage leaf or onion layer to keep the veggies submerged under the juices (read this note about weighting shredded produce).

7) Apply ReCAP fermenting top using instructions above

8) Store in a cool place or at room temperature & taste after several weeks. You might prefer it after 5 weeks or more! Cooler temps ferment more slowly & create more mellow flavors and crisper texture

9) Eat or refrigerate once it reaches your preferred level of sourness and crunch

Some particularly tasty combinations:

Carrots with ginger

Broccoli, cauliflower, carrots with garlic and basil

French breakfast radishes with carrots

Mixed red with green cabbage

Apples with cabbage and ginger

Beets, radishes, carrots

Red onions with one or two bays leaves and four peppercorns

Green cabbage with seaweed (cut up small and soaked in warm water at least 30 min)

]]>http://www.farmcurious.com/using-your-farmcurious-fermenting-set/feed/15WIDE Mouth 3-Piece Fermenting Set with ReCAPhttp://www.farmcurious.com/widerecapset/
http://www.farmcurious.com/widerecapset/#commentsTue, 02 Oct 2012 18:03:48 +0000http://www.farmcurious.com/?p=3968more]]>The complete 3-piece set to make your own DIY fermenting vessel from a WIDE Mouth canning jar. The ReCAP BPA-free plastic lid screws onto any wide mouth mason jar for a tight seal while the stopper and airlock allow your ferment to exhaust carbon dioxide without introducing oxygen or having to “burp” the lid. Comes in Silver and Black. Order 3 or more and receive free shipping (see note below)**.

A match made in heaven. Save money when you buy the three together (mason jar not included).

A design inspired by the classic American zinc cap, but enhanced with the practicality of BPA-free recyclable plastic. With reCAP Wide Mouth, you can easily shake, pour and store right from your wide mouth mason jars!

Fits wide mouth jars

Spill-proof

BPA free

Made in USA

Unlike other mason jar lids you may have seen on the market, this one does not leak!

Generally we try to avoid plastic but since this is BPA free, made in America, leak-proof and likely to help you get more mileage out of your canning jars, we feel like it’s totally worth adding to your collection.

Please note: The ReCAP in the photo is the regular mouth but you will receive the wide mouth when you add this product to your cart.***

Bread. Cheese. Wine. Beer. Coffee. Chocolate. Most people consume fermented foods and drinks every day. For thousands of years, humans have enjoyed the distinctive flavors and nutrition resulting from the transformative power of microscopic bacteria and fungi. Wild Fermentation: The Flavor, Nutrition, and Craft of Live-Culture Foods is the first cookbook to widely explore the culinary magic of fermentation.

“Fermentation has been an important journey of discovery for me,” writes author Sandor Ellix Katz. “I invite you to join me along this effervescent path, well trodden for thousands of years yet largely forgotten in our time and place, bypassed by the superhighway of industrial food production.” The flavours of fermentation are compelling and complex, quite literally alive.

This book takes readers on a whirlwind trip through the wide world of fermentation, providing readers with basic and delicious recipes-some familiar, others exotic-that are easy to make at home.

The Art of Fermentation is the most comprehensive guide to do-it-yourself home fermentation ever published. Sandor Katz presents the concepts and processes behind fermentation in ways that are simple enough to guide a reader through their first experience making sauerkraut or yogurt, and in-depth enough to provide greater understanding and insight for experienced practitioners.

While Katz expertly contextualizes fermentation in terms of biological and cultural evolution, health and nutrition, and even economics, this is primarily a compendium of practical information-how the processes work; parameters for safety; techniques for effective preservation; troubleshooting; and more.

With illustrations and extended resources, this book provides essential wisdom for cooks, homesteaders, farmers, gleaners, foragers, and food lovers of any kind who want to develop a deeper understanding and appreciation for arguably the oldest form of food preservation, and part of the roots of culture itself. Readers will find detailed information on fermenting vegetables; sugars into alcohol (meads, wines, and ciders); sour tonic beverages; milk; grains and starchy tubers; beers (and other grain-based alcoholic beverages); beans; seeds; nuts; fish; meat; and eggs, as well as growing mold cultures, using fermentation in agriculture, art, and energy production, and considerations for commercial enterprises. Sandor Katz has introduced what will undoubtedly remain a classic in food literature, and is the first-and only-of its kind.